Spanish researchers have discovered fossils they say could be from the oldest identified relative of the giant panda. The specimens are from a species the scientists are calling Kretzoiarctos beatrix, and they are in the range of 11.5 million to 12.5 million years old, according to lead study author Juan Abella, at the National Museum of Natural Sciences in Spain.

These fossils, described in the journal PLOS ONE, were found in northeast Spain, and come from two adult individuals. One set, which Abella and colleagues described last year in the journal Estudios Geológico, consists of two teeth. The other includes a broken mandible and incomplete upper carnassial (large tooth).

This new study takes into account the both sets of fossils, and compares them with more species, Abella said. The additional fossils allowed the scientists to come up with the genus Kretzoiarctos beatrix.

The oldest fossils in the panda lineage that have been found in China are significantly younger - they are thought to be between 7.2 and 8.2 million years old, said Abella.

However, the scientists are not claiming to know that pandas evolved in Spain and then migrated to China. There is not enough information to make this statement.

So, don't go around calling this the missing panda link, Abella said. It's certainly possible that there are other older panda relative fossils out there waiting to be found. Moreover, we don't know for sure what the panda family tree looked like.

"That fossil record is very fragmentary and so it is difficult to state 100% sure that one fossil species was the direct ancestor of an extant one," Abella said in an e-mail.

When this proto-panda roamed Spain, the climate was more humid and warm, Abella said. That means there fruits and plants were in greater abundance, which may have enabled the ancient panda to incorporate more plants in its diet.

Scientists aren't sure whether bamboo was present in their habitat at that time, but there may have been similar plants associated with humid climates, Abella said.

There are obviously still a lot of unknowns about the prehistoric pandas these fossils potentially came from. More specimens from the same place would be needed to determine the sex of the creatures and exactly how big they were, Abella said.

"The discovery is very important to understand the origin of the lineage that leads to the giant panda millions of years after," Abella said. "It may also help scientists to understand the adaptations in both the skull and jaw, that helps, this unique bear, to be able to feed on hard bamboo stems."

Bears have been living in the Iberian Peninsula for at least the last 11.5 million years, Abella said. There are still brown bears living in the mountains in the north of Spain.

Humans are picky eaters, and not just because we’re the only species that reviews restaurants. A new study suggests that our ancestors’ diets may have been different from our close primate relatives much earlier than we thought.

The human ancestor in question is called Australopithecus bahrelghazali. Remains of it were found in Chad at the Koro Toro fossil site. Researchers looked at fossils are more than 3 million years old.

Researchers examined the ratios of carbon isotopes present in the teeth of this early hominin, a word paleontologists use to talk about human ancestors. They reported their results in the journal Proceedings of the National Academy of Sciences.

Tens of thousands of tourists, scientists and amateur astronomers gathered Wednesday along Australia's northern tip to witness a rare total solar eclipse.

For just two eerie minutes in the early hours of the morning local time, the country – known for its blistering sunshine – was plunged into a chilly darkness.

Onlookers gathered at vantage points on beaches, in boats and even hot air balloons to catch a glimpse of the celestial light show which, according to NASA, is unlikely to be seen again in the same region for another 360 years.

About

Light Years strives to tell the stories of science research, discovery, space and education. This is your go-to place on CNN.com for today’s stories, but also for a scientific perspective on the news and everyday wonders. Come indulge your curiosity in all things space and science related, brought to you by the entire CNN family.